The future of the EU and the role of the regions

Abstract

A broad debate on the future of Europe is currently taking place, at a time of multiple challenges for European integration. At the same time, we are witnessing striking calls for greater autonomy or even independence on the part of several regions in Europe, intensified regional lobbying, transnational regional cooperation and macro-regional strategies. These developments illustrate the need to discuss what role the regions could and should play in the future EU27.